A Little of This, Some More of That

When we first moved here Paul bought running shoes, because the shoes he was using made his feet sore. Then we bought some soccer cleats for our weekly games for me. Plus I had to buy shoes for work, since I am required to wear "professional" outfits. I doubt we will buy any more shoes in the near future (since we are trying to save our pennies), but if we wanted to we could buy dancing shoes.

Yep! My man is awesome and he willingly signed up with me for swing dancing lessons. It wouldn’t have been so easy, except Paul's friend at work actually teaches swing dancing every Tuesday night. We had no excuse not to go, and Paul had his little reminder everyday at work.

What I didn't realize was that we would be switching partners every couple minutes. Just when I would begin to get used to my new partner it was time to get uncomfortable again and move on. It was like a singles dance, only you had to dance with everyone, except the guy you really wanted to dance with. The night included sweaty hands, awkward eye contact, stepping on each others feet, oh and dancing. All the while my husband was across the room getting to hang out with other girls! I don’t think I am a jealous person, but when I get stuck with a creepy sweaty guy, I was envious of those girls. I told Paul the whole reason I got married was so I wouldn't have to dance with other people! It was still fun, and now Paul and I have to practice so next week we will ready for some new moves.

The weather was exciting here in Austin this week. Paul and I talked ourselves into running, changed our clothes, and got outside to see lightening everywhere. I think my friend Lori may have rubbed off on me, cause I am a little more cautious with lighting now then before. We decided to head back inside just in time to get a phone call from my uncle saying there was a tornado warning and the storm looked like it was going to come right over our place. We watched the news, we looked out the windows, and we even got our 72 hour kit out and put it in the bathroom, and waited. The winds picked up for maybe 5 min maybe a little rain, and then it was over. Talk about a let down! Nothing!

The next day on my way to work I saw tree limbs busted, power lines down, and leaves everywhere. I guess the storm took all its power and headed for downtown instead. I'm not saying I wish we had been hit with a tornado, but the wind we saw couldn't even be considered normal WY wind. Either way we survived our first tornado warning in TX.

***I have a feeling you are going to get a lot of blog entries from my experiences on the bus.***

All of the buses have a sign saying that certain seats are to be given up for the elderly or handicapped. I am lucky enough to get on before the UT campus stops which means I have a choice of seats throughout out the bus. I do however prefer the ones marked for the elderly because they are facing forward with more leg room. Anyway the bus was filling up fast with the last of the UT students finishing up finals, and most of the seats were taken and two women were left standing. This guy, whom I thought to be a little crazy from earlier in the ride, gave up his seat for one of the girls. The chivalry did not end there though. He looked in the back of the bus and saw that there was a seat empty, just hard to get at, and he asked people to move so the other woman could sit down. How easy it was for the rest of us to close our eyes or look out the window and ignore the people standing in the isle.

What happened to people being courteous to each other? What happened to gentlemen? In a world where everyone is trying to be independent, it has become uncomfortable for people to be considerate or polite to each other.

In other news, it is just Paul and me again. My mommy left last week for a short stay in CO, and then she is off to New Mexico to see more family. She will have managed to see all her kids and grandkids in three months time, as well her own siblings. Pretty good Mom!

Tomorrow is our last soccer game for the season. I don’t know how many soccer seasons there are in Austin, but I have a feeling this isn’t the end. If we win this game, we will be number one in our division. I can’t say I was much help, but at least I was an extra body on the field.

OH! We have these little tiny (smaller then gnats) ants crawling in and around our kitchen sink. I am told they are sugar ants and they just want water. I don’t care who you are, bugs of any sort crawling in my kitchen is disgusting. We are supposed to get our place sprayed this afternoon, so hopefully that will help. I have to laugh at my bug entries. You can totally tell I am not from around here, because I feel the need to blog about bugs! Sigh!

Well I am sorry to be a slacker with my entries. I have been super busy at work, and when I get home, I really feel entitled to veg out and do nothing. That is not a good idea, but it is how I feel none the less.

Happy Friday everyone!

If you would have asked me 10 years ago, if I would willingly ride the bus to and from work, I would have said HECK NO! That was due to the fact that I rode the school bus for 15 years straight. I figured I had done my part in helping the environment by taking mass transit.

Two years ago when Paul and I decided to buy the Honda, we both wanted a manual. They are more fun to drive, and you can get better gas mileage. Plus we were in WY, where there really isn't stop and go traffic, so your leg really wouldn't get tired of shifting all the time.

Until...We moved to Austin, and recently my left leg has started to get bigger then my right leg. The limp was getting noticeable and the doctor said it was something called manualitisism (abnormal muscle growth in the leg, due to excessive gear shifting during stop and go traffic). I kid about the doctor and the malady, but I do not jest about the excessive gear shifting. It only took me three weeks to decide that I needed to bite the bullet, swallow my pride and get back on the bus.

Today was the day. I woke up early, found the bus stop, and climbed on for the shortest am trip downtown I had experienced to date. The only problem I had was finding my place of work after I got off the bus. I am after all new to the area, so finding landmarks was, to say the least, difficult. I walked more then I needed to in every direction but the right one, and finally found my office bldg. I can only hope getting on the bus this after noon will be less eventful!

Oh, and I guess I can be happy that I am helping the environment, by taking the bus. Al Gore would be so proud of me!

Josh and Melissa came to visit us, and to enjoy the warm weather! I like to think they came to just see us, but we know the idea of a warm spring break was also a factor!

We hiked to Mt. Bonnell (which shouldn't be called a Mt. at all) and saw the Austin City Skyline. We ate at the Oasis which overlooks Travis Lake and has amazing views, and we played a pretty lousy game of miniature golf. I did however manage to find two tokens in a mini arcade and I won 18 tickets. I purchased some sweet tarts for Josh, and some plastic poppy things for Melissa and me. We hung out, played in a park and kicked a soccer ball around, and vegged. Just what a vacation should be!

We didn't even know this till Josh and Melissa were down here, but San Antonio has a Sea World!!! Since it was only an hour and a half away, we took the opportunity to visit Shamu and his friends! It was awesome! We sat in the splash zone at the killer whale show. We came out completely soaked (luckily I brought a plastic bag for the camera). We rode a roller coaster, and got wet on another water ride, and we saw some sea lions perform, as well as some dolphins. I loved it!

After the adventures of Sea World we headed for the river walk in down town San Antonio. We managed to meet up with my old roommate Chrissy and her family and ate some BBQ. Josh was looking forward to some Texas BBQ and was not impressed with the food, but I think they liked the actual river.

And it wouldn't be a true visit to Texas without seeing some of the local wildlife! The Roundy's found a cockroach as they were getting ready for bed Saturday night. I think they handled it much better then I do. I have become quite the squealer with bugs lately.

I sure hope they had as much fun as I did. It was so great having family visit us in our new home, and share with us in some new adventures! Anyone and everyone, our air mattress, and couch are always open for a visit (not to mention the spare bathroom!) The Denson hotel as Megan likes to call it, is open for your enjoyment!
Love to all!

It is official! I was offered the job at the Texas Education Agency, and I start Monday the 24th. This is perfect timing, since Melissa and Josh are coming for a visit tomorrow. Now I will get to play with them, and then start work on Monday and end my boredom.

Yesterday I tested rush hour traffic to see how bad it would be to drive to down town Austin every morning. I forgot how crazy jam packed the roads can be! It should hopefully take 45 min or less to get to work every morning, but who knows how bad it will be in the evenings!

I went shopping yesterday to get ready for this new job. I was completely spoiled at the fire department with the dress code (which was mostly jeans and a long sleeve top). Now I have to dress more professional and for the heat, so shopping was a necessity. It was awesome to have so many stores within ten minutes of our place. I am not a huge shopper, but it is still nice to be close to whatever I need.

We just got news last night that we will be an aunt and uncle again in October. Jason and Mysha are expecting a baby in the fall! Congrats you two! Congrats to soon to be Grandma and Grandpa Denson as well, we know they have been waiting a long time for this!